Newsletter Categories

2017 WKMR Connection

Personal, Financial and Legal Record Organization - Part Two

Winter 2017

by Marge Buchholz, CPA/ABV, CVA

In the fall 2016 Issue of the WKMR Connection Newsletter I wrote an article that discussed the importance of organizing your personal, financial and legal records, sharing the following organizational tips:

•Create a list of your financial, investment and insurance information

Tax Facts 2016/2017

Making the Most Out of Miscellaneous Deductions

Summer 2017

Miscellaneous deductions are tax breaks that generally don’t fit into a particular tax category. They can help reduce taxable income and the amount of taxes owed. For example, some employees can deduct certain work expenses like uniforms as miscellaneous deductions. To do that, they must itemize their deductions instead of taking the standard deduction on their tax return.

Here are several tips in dealing to think about when dealing with miscellaneous deductions:

Beware of Scammers – Protect Your Information

IT Corner – Winter 2017

These days, cybercriminals are at it like never before and identity theft is everywhere. By taking a few simple steps, you can better protect your personal and financial data online and at home from these scammers.

Cybercriminals continue stealing large amounts of personal data from people all over the world. They can use that data to file fraudulent tax returns or commit other crimes while impersonating the victims.

Not-For-Profit External Financial Reporting - Part 1

Summer 2017

by Elise Zuleger, Accounting Associate

In this first article of a five part series, the discussion will involve the general concept of not-for-profit (AKA nonprofit) accounting and what must be reported when providing information externally. The succeeding parts of the series will break down each financial statement that is required to be reported, giving further insight into each.

When must a not-for-profit organization externally report their financials?

Buying Your First Home

Winter 2017

by Ryan Brasch, CPA

There comes a time in most people’s lives when they decide to transition from renting to buying their home. Every individual’s home-buying experience is different as it depends on a multitude of variables. From your budget to your lender, to your own personal preferences on what you are looking for in a home, there are a lot of factors to think about before you start the process. This article gives some tips and insight into the home buying process and hopefully help to make the experience as painless and efficient as possible.

What Has WannaCry Taught Us?

IT Corner – Summer 2017

The global ransomware attack dubbed WannaCry marked an unwelcome precedent in the dark world of cybercrime. It is the first cyberattack that combined ransomware with the self-propagating power of a “worm” to generate a wide-ranging global attack, affecting some 200,000 computers in more than 150 countries with the toll still rising. The hackers behind the scheme took standard ransomware and were able to replicate it on a global scale.

2016 WKMR Connection

Personal, Financial and Legal Record Organization - Part 1

Fall 2016

by Marge Buccholz, CPA/ABV, CVA

Did you ever have to look for something and you just couldn’t find it? You know you’ve got it somewhere and you had it put safely in a certain place, but everywhere you look it’s just not there. It’s frustrating when you can’t find even that one thing you are looking for. Now think about what will happen when you pass away and your family has to not only work through the difficult grieving process, but in the midst of that, take care of all the specifics to settle your estate. Will they know where to find everything they will need? Will they miss something important?

NFPs - Types of Monetary Donations

Fall 2016

by Jeni Caldwell, CPA

Not-for-profit organizations (NFP) are largely supported by donations, contributions, and grants from the public and/or government. When a donor gives a NFP money, there are different ways this money can be recorded and used based on the wishes of the donor.

Update on Chip Card Technology

IT Corner – Fall 2016

Back in October 2015, retailers experienced a liability shift when the onus for absorbing the cost of counterfeit transactions shifted from the banks to the individual merchants if the retailers had not migrated from swipe card systems to the newer EMV technology. Those merchants who installed EMV (chip) technology in their cash register networks by the October deadline were able to continue to enjoy liability protection from the card issuers.

Changes to Social Security

Fall 2016

The Social Security Administration (SSA) announced that the maximum amount of wages in 2017 subject to the 6.2 percent Social Security tax (old age, survivor, and disability insurance) will rise from $118,500 to $127,200, an increase of more than 7 percent. By comparison, the 2016 wage base was unchanged from 2015.

The maximum amount of Social Security tax a taxpayer could pay will therefore increase from $7,347 in 2016 to $7,886.40 in 2017, an increase of $539.40.